Hosiery



March 3, 1953 J. HAMILTON 2,629,996

HOSIERY Filed July ll, 1951 2 S-YEETS--SHEET l INVENTOR:

Jaim Hal fafa, @l @i A TTORNEYS.

Patented Mar. 3, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HOSIERY John Hamilton, Ivyland, Pa., assignor-to Marjorie I. Ruth, Louisville, Ky.

which is integrally knitted throughout, with reinforcem'ent and barriers to strengthen the fabric in the apertured region of the foot end, and to insure against ravelling of the fabric into the instep in the event of loop rupture in said apertured region.

Other important objects and attendant advantages Will be pointed out in the following detailed description of the attached drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing my improved stocking as it appears on the leg of the wearer.

Fig. 2 shows the foot bottom of the stocking.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view showing the front end of the foot as seen from one side.

Fig. 4 shows the knitted blank from which the stocking is formed.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view showing the construction of the fabric within the area of the broken line rectangle V in Fig. 4; and

Figs. 6 and 7 are fragmentary views showing l successive looping and seaming steps resorted to in finishing the stocking.

In Figs. 1-3 -of these illustrations, my improved stocking is depicted, by way of example. as being of the full length variety having a leg portion I with a welt 2 at the top, a foot with a heel 3 and with an instep portion 4. Instead of being formed with the -conventional toe at the front end of the instep portion 4, the foot is foreshortened and provided with a` transverse row of apertures or iholes 6, for protrusion through them' of the wearers toes. In the illustrated instance, the stocking is formed from a continuously knitted fiat selvaged blank of plain fabric shaped as shown in Fig. 4, with narrow Wale-wise selvaged partitioning fabric segments 21, 28, 29 and 30 between the toe apertures or holes 6, and with barrier courses 8, 9, and I0 of lock stitches respectively slightly above and below said apertures to prevent runs which might originate in the apertured zone from continuing up into the instep 4.

The lock stitch courses may be of any approved formation. In Fig. 5 I have shown these courses, by way of example, as being formed by lateral transfer of alternate Vneedle wale loops and by doubling them withuthe intermediate needle wale loops after a manner well known in the art. Somewhat beyond the barrier course I0, the blank is provided with `a loose course 35, and beyond `the latter course with a few loopers rounds 36.

For greater resistance to wear, the apertured zone H, in which the barrier courses 8, 9 and Ill are involved, is preferably reinforced by use of a heavy gauge yarn in the knitting as compared to the yarn employed in the leg, heel and advance instep portions of the stocking. This construction will be readily understood from' Fig. 5 wherein the fine gauge leg yarn is indicated by thin lines and the reinforcing yarns by thicker lines.

To complete the stocking, the selvages of the instep portion 4 of the blank are folded under as shown in Fig. 6 to meet in the longitudinal median of the blank. The superposed sections of the loose course 35 are then looped together in a suitable looping machine with consequent formation of the seam 5, the loopers rounds 36 being at the same time removed. Finallyy the remaining portions of the side selvages of the blank are superposed, one upon the other, and the blank run through a cup feed or other suitable sewing machine with incidental formation of the back seam 1.

The method of producing stockings of my invention commercially in quantity is claimed in a separate patent application Ser. No. 2361,141 concurrently led herewith.

It is to be understood that I do not consider myself limited to the precise details of construction and arrangement herein shown and described by way of example since, within the scope of the broader of the appended claims, considerable variations are possible as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art of hosiery production. It is to be further understood that my invention is not necessarily confined to full fashioned hosiery. Furthermore the invention can be embodied, with attainment of the advantages hereinbefore pointed out, in knee length stockings, in anklets, or even in "footees and the like in which only a foot portion is involved.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a knitted stocking having transversely-aligned openings at the front end of its foot portion for projection through them of the wearers toes, said openings being separated by Wale-wise selvaged strip seg- :ments of the fabric, and barrier courses of lock stitches respectively immediately above and below the transversely-aligned openings.

2. A stocking characterized as in claim 1, wherein the front end portion of the foot in which the openings are involved, is reinforced.

3. A stocking characterized as in claim 1, wherein the front end portion of the foot, in which the openings and the barrier courses are involved, is reinforced.

4. A stocking integrally-knitted throughout and characterized as in claim 1.

5. As a new article of manufacture, a knitted stocking having transversely-aligned openings at the front end of its foot portion for projection through them of the Wearers toes, said openings being separated by Wale-wise selvaged strip segments of the fabric, said stocking being formed from a fashioned selvaged blank with a looped crosswise seam closing the front end of the foot, and With a longitudinal stitched seam uniting the selvages of the blank, the latter seam extend- .ing down the back of the leg portion and medially of the foot bottom to a point of juncture with said looped crosswise seam.

6. A stocking characterized as in claim 1,

formed from a fashioned at selVage-edged blank with a looped cross-Wise seam closing the front end of the foot, and with a longitudinal stitched seam uniting the selvages of the blank, the latter seam extending down the back of the leg Vportion and medially of the foot bottom to a, point of vjuncture with said looped crosswise seam.

'7. A stocking according to claim 5, wherein laterally-transferred alternate fabric loops are doubled with adjacent loops to constitute barrier courses.

8. A knitted stocking foot having transverselyaligned openings at the front end for protrusion through them of the wearers toes, said openings being separated by Wale-wise extending selvaged strip segments of the fabric, and barrier courses of lock stitches respectively above and below the transversely-aligned openings.

9. A stocking foot characterized as in claim 8, wherein the front end portion in which the openings and the barrier courses are involved, is reinforced.

JOHN HAMILTON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,105,758 Scarborough Jan. 18, 1938 2,424,056 Ruth July 15, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Y Number Country Date 765,482 France Mar. 26, 1934 

